Roman Polanski: Wanted and Desired was the first film to sell at the Sundance independent film festival held earlier in January in Utah. International distribution rights to the documentary were purchased by distribution powerhouse Weinstein Co.
The documentary film, directed by Marina Zenovich, depicts the details surrounding the much-publicized 1977 trial of the Polish filmmaker after he was accused of raping a 13-year-old American girl. Through archived film clips and new interviews, Zenovich reopens the case, bringing forward a poignant suggestion of how the ensuing media frenzy might have affected the outcome of the trial.
Polanski fled the US and went into exile in Paris before he could be sentenced for unlawful sex with a minor. He continues to live in Paris today with wife Emmanuelle Seigner and their two children.
For years, Hollywood has kept up a love-hate relationship with the man, who is at once one of the world's most brilliant directors and a fugitive convicted of a particularly heinous crime. Polanski's 2003 Best Director Oscar for The Pianist reignited interest in Polanski's life and oeuvre, giving rise to speculation about whether he would ever be allowed to return to the US.
Polanski, well-known for his work on films such as Chinatown and Rosemary's Baby appears to be as loved in France as he was hated in the US. Zenovich attempts to blend these two visions of Polanski to give a balanced portrayal of a man who, prior to the scandal, survived WWII as a child in Poland, lost his whole family in the war, escaped a Nazi death camp and went on to find Hollywood stardom in the 1960s, only to lose his wife and their unborn baby to followers of Charles Manson.
"It is a timeless story because of him being a celebrity and the sensational aspects of the case," Zenovich said.
